Antisideslipping attachment for motor vehicles



Nov. M, 1939. H. NORTON ANTISIDESLIPPING ATTACHMENT FOR MOTOR VEHICLES Filed. April 11, 1938 gwuc/wfm, H L. Norlon.

Patented Nov. 14, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ANTISIDESLIPPING ATTACHMENT FOB- MOTOR- VEHICLES Homer L. Norton, Shepherd, Mich. Application April 1 1, 1938, Serial No, 201,463

This invention relates to ground-engaging description, in connection with the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of one form of the invention attached on the rear end of a frame or chassis of a motor vehicle, the position of the rear wheels being indicated by the larger brokenline circle, and in which the broken vertical line passes through the axial center of the rear wheels.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the form shown in Fig. 1, a part of the rear beam of the frame being broken out, the broken line indicating the position of the axis of the rear wheels.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a modified form of the invention applied on a frame-section similar to that of Fig. 2, the broken line indicating the position of the axis of the rear wheels.

Referring to the drawing in detail, in which similar reference numerals refer to similar parts in the several views, the invention is described in detail as follows:

The frame or chassis c is of conventional channel-beam construction to which has been added (in Figs. 1 and 2) two cross-beams 5 and 6, the latter having downturned ends I (see Fig. 1) which are apertured to receive pivotal elements which may be separate and disunited, or may be combined in a single rod or bolt 8. A channelbeam section ii is united with the cross-beams 5 and 6, and its parallel flanges extend downward and are apertured to receive the pivotal element at the central part of the rod 8, also to receive a pivotal element it. A bifurcated arm I l is apertured at its front end to receive the pivotal element 8 at points between the flanges of the member 9, and is apertured at itsrear end to receive an axle i2 which also receives a sharpedged wheel it which is double-edged as shown, viz., having two knife-edged peripheries that are beveled on their inner sides, and unbeveled on their outer sides, so as to out deeper and deeper into the surface of a road or street on which they are forced laterally by any force that tends to cause sideslipping thereof while rolling on such surface; but the invention is not restricted to a double-edged wheel. The bifurcated arm ll may be of any appropriate shape and construction, but is here shown as composed of two flat bars that are united by means of a rod" l4 having nuts 15 screw-threaded on its end portions, and having washers or other appropriate spacing means it on its intermediate portion. The nuts I5, being screwed tight against the bars of the arm I I, combine with the saidbars and rod I4 and spacing means Hi to form a pivoted arm H which 10 is quite rigid, but not sufficiently rigid to withstand very strong side-pressure; so diagonally disposed brace-rods ll are provided with'apertured and bent frontand rear ends, the rear ends receiving the outer'end portions of the axle I2 and being clamped between nuts [8 which are'screwthreaded onthe axle [2; so it is seen'that the members ll, l2, l1 and I8 are combined in a rigid unit that can properly be termed a wheelcarrying unit. The front ends of the brace-rods 0 are pivoted on the rod 8 and are securely located by means of the head of the rod and a nut 8a that is screw-threaded on this rod,so' that the combination thus far disclosed effectually prevents any appreciable movement of the wheel l3 laterally of the chassis c. A cable it, or other appropriate means, may be employed for raising and holding the rear end of the wheel-carrying unit in the broken-line position, while a spring element 20 is properly connected to the frame 0 and to the wheel-carrying unit for continually exerting a downward pull on the latter so as to assist gravitation in very quickly lowering the wheel l3 into ground-engaging position when the operator or driver releases the cable Hi from any appropriate retaining means (not shown). The spring 20, or a plurality of such springs, have the further purpose and effect of tightly but yieldingly pressing the sharp-edged wheel against the road or street, when in its operative position, for pressing the knife-edge or edges of the wheel into the surface of the road or street, or into any ice or sleet that the machine may have started to sideslip on, and thereby counteract the sideslipping tendency.

In the modified form, Fig. 3, a simpler construction is shown, viz., a construction which eliminates some of the parts shown in Figs. 1 and 2, for instance the parts 6, l, 8, 9, I0, while substituting and combining other parts as follows:

Instead of the wheel-carrying unit being composed of the elements II, I! and their uniting means, I show (in Fig. 3) a rigid V-shaped barmetal structure composed of apertured bars ifil'l rigidly united by means of a cross-bar H6 and 55 

